Roy Orbison and Friends
Jan 3 Roy Orbison and Friends: A Black and White Night premieres on Cinemax; concert performance includes James Burton; Bonnie Raitt, Bruce Springsteen, Elvis Costello, Tom Waits, and k.d. lang)
- Jan 10 "Don't Get God Started" closes at Longacre Theater NYC after 86 performances
"Got My Mind Set On You"
Jan 16 George Harrison's single "Got My Mind Set On You" tops the Billboard charts; the cover song was written by Rudy Clark and originally recorded by James Ray in 1962
- Jan 17 "Teddy & Alice" closes at Minskoff Theater NYC after 77 performances
3rd Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Jan 20 3rd Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees: The Beach Boys; The Beatles; The Drifters; Bob Dylan; The Supremes; Woody Guthrie; Leadbelly; Les Paul; and Berry Gordy, Jr.
15th American Music Awards
Jan 25 15th American Music Awards: Anita Baker; Paul Simon; & Whitney Houston win
- Jan 25 George Harrison releases single "When We Was Fab", peaks at #23 in the US
Phantom of the Opera
Jan 26 Andrew Lloyd Webber and Charles Hart's musical "Phantom of the Opera", directed by Hal Prince and starring Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman, opens at Majestic Theater, NYC ; runs for 13,981 performances, winning 7 Tony Awards, and becoming Broadway's longest-running shows
- Jan 28 South African Mbongeni Ngema and Hugh Masekela's musical "Sarafina!", based on the Soweto Uprising against apartheid, opens at the Cort Theater, NYC; runs for 597 performances
Country Singers
Jazz Musicians
Opera Singers
Pop Stars
Rappers
Rockers